The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1887-11-25
BEFORE AND AFTER.
Tow Let and Courted the Pres
ent Mrs. Grimes.

1t amt every man that has chance
10 see the worst side of his wife's char
acter afore marriage. and the sweet
ness after. But bein' tinman, with
as good an outfit as travels "a New Eng
land road, bilers, pans, brooms, tea
kettles, an all sorts O. nick-nacks,
bein' included. get a pretty good back
view Of what learned folks call society.
An it was along o. follerin' my trade
in this fashion that l first saw the pres
ent Mrs. Grimes.
She was at the wash tub. an the
suds was flying for all they was with.
She looked pretty, too, though you
might not think it from the work she
was at, for she had red hair and the
water he'd made it curl around the
forehead, an the rubin he'd made
her cheeks rosy, an something I'll tell
of when l get to it he'd made her eyes
snap.
1t was one of those big houses in a
suburb she was dom work at as third
girl, to help the old folks back on the
farm. She could a-gone into mill to
work. but somehow she didn't take SO
kindly to mill work. she told ME after
wards, as she did to homework, even
if homework was more drudgin' and
confinin'.
The back yard to this house was a
green sort o place, with lots o bushes
an trees aforc you got in full sight o
the kitchen door, an when I'd got
where l was pretty near a good view o.
the premises, an aforc / could get an
other sight o the little woman ut the
tub, heard some body say, with lots
o solid meanin' in the tones:
sYou do that again, an I'll do
some thing more than talk now
mind!'
l stepped out in full view o mat
tiers. an there little mite O. rigged-up
babyhood was spillin' dirt into the
wash-tub.
1t was an aggravatin' thing, an l
know Jest how that little woman felt.
There she was a-working away for
dear life-for it was late an l could
Fee there was still a big pile o clothes
unwashed-an' that little wretch d
Erinnin' an throwin' in fists full O.
dirt. jest wondered what ed happen.
As / kept comm nearer the house,
the young rascal ran out for another
handful. an with face at me skipped
back lively as Il cricket, anticipatin'
no doubt, the fun of more scoldin'.
But he missed his calculations. He
hadn't no more than put his inverted
body close to the tub than the little
woman he'd been a tormentin' just
swooped down on him easy and swift,
like, an without a mite O. fuss OF
waste of breath, landed him plump in
the suds-slippers, velvet, dirt an all
While you could count, perhaps five,
she held him there bleached-out little
sinner, too completely knocked out o
I. his reckonin' to even cry. Then she
set him, all drippin' like drowned
rat, on the floor, an held him fast by
the shoulders.
you've done that times enough. y
she said, with a grain O temper that
found it easy to forgive. IAN no ont
has stopped you. Now I've taken yor
in hand, an will see what lbcome of it
Go tell your mother, an tell her Tn
ready to give her an explanation. Nov
you CO."
With howl that would have done
credit to a Fejee Islander, the soaked
torment started, an his self-constitutet
discipliner went to rubin fast an
furious, as if she he'd still something t.
work off.
In spite o. her temper, should have
liked to give her hearty hand-shake
but knew enough about suburb folk:
an their relations to their third girl:
to know such a proceedin' wouldn't bt
prudent; it wouldn't help the third CIR
mite, SO ! jest travelled back the way
! had come, without a word about bill
crs or anything else. l felt pretty
sure the fewer spectators to the scene
that would follow. when that young
ster's mother came down stairs, tn,
better.
The folks in the kitchen had seen me
but knew at least one of them would
be more comfortabler if l left, an
wouldn't lay up agin me any leavin
out o. manners. But made it in my
way to call around there an see if the,
had any rags or old paper they wanted
70 swap for tinvare.
The third girl wasn't there. only tn,
second girl ironin' subdued-like nc
table. She said they didn't trade with
peddlers-they bought all their til
things down to the store. Then
looked round careless, an asked wher,
the other girl was, but at that sh,
looked scared an said she didn't know
she'd been discharged an no one knew
where she'd gone.
Twas mighty sorry at that for II
admired that plucky dousin', in spite o
the bit o temper. Well. / said good